PART I: ABOUT THE DEPARTMENT
We are looking for a dynamic and exceptional Head of Rowing (teaching or non-teaching) to lead and manage the delivery of high-quality rowing coaching to pupils aged 13-18.
Winchester College Boat Club is one of the oldest school boat clubs in the country, founded officially in 1867. It is a small (less than 70 pupils) but nationally competitive club that has an excellent coach to athlete ratio and is well supported by the College.
Most rowing takes place on the Itchen Navigation, part of the network of rivers and streams running through Winchester, and there is a very well-equipped boathouse within walking distance of the College. Long-distance training takes place on the tidal waters in Southampton from the University boat hard. The club has a high quality fleet of boats.
In the first year, all rowing is in sculling boats and most racing is in coxed quads and octuples. At the start of the second year the transition is made to sweep boats and the main racing boat from then on is VIII. Winchester crews race at all levels at head races during the winter season and regattas during the summer.
The School employs two full time coaches and a number of part time coaches. Rowing is offered to pupils in all age groups. The Head of Rowing will work closely with these coaches to deliver high quality rowing coaching.
Responsible to: Director of Sport
Responsible for (staff): All Rowing Coaches, Boatman and Rowing Coaches
PART II: ROLE AND RESPONSIBLITIES
Main Purpose
The Head of Rowing is responsible for all aspects of the good conduct of Boat Club. They will provide effective leadership and management of Rowing and thereby build and maintain an effective teaching and coaching team which continually enhances the quality of learning and achievement.
The postholder will be responsible for running Rowing under the direction and guidance of the Director of Sport ensuring that all teaching, coaching and administrative tasks are completed efficiently, to ensure success, enjoyment and enthusiasm for Winchester College School Rowing.
Roles and responsibilities:
Budget
Leadership
Management and teaching
Communication
Professional Development
This list is not exhaustive and it is expected that the successful candidate will be willing to undertake ad-hoc duties as necessary.
PART III: PERSON SPECIFICATION AND KEY QUALITIES
Winchester College welcomes applications for this position from those with teaching (any curriculum subject) and non-teaching backgrounds alike. The precise details of the postholder’s contract will depend on the background and nature of the appointment.
For those applying for a non-teaching role, an understanding of the education environment would be an advantage, but is not essential.
Qualifications
Experience, skills and knowledge
Personal attributes
PART IV: BENEFITS, TERMS AND CONDITIONS, AND APPLICATION
Start date
This position will ideally commence in September 2024, but this can be subject to negotiation with the successful applicant.
Applicants for a teaching role
Salary
Winchester College has its own generous salary scale, which is above the national scale. In addition to salary, the school allocates a Special Responsibility Allowance (SRA) to those with additional roles, which will be negotiated at the appropriate level.
Accommodation
Accommodation is provided within the buildings of the College.
Induction and Continuous Training and Development
The school is fully committed to the induction, training and development of all our staff, with staff supported to grow and reach their full potential. All staff are well supported when they arrive, with help and advice available from Heads of Department, Housemasters, and the Director of Studies, who has specific responsibility for overseeing the induction process.
All members of the Common Room are encouraged to subscribe to external CPD courses. In addition, we deliver a range of training, run by both our own staff and external providers, varying from highly practical First Aid courses to seminars and learning lunches on many aspects of teaching and learning, as well as offering access to Udemy, an online learning platform.
There is an annual professional development review offering the opportunity to reflect on professional practice and development opportunities.
Private Health Care and Pension
The successful applicant will be enrolled in the school’s Corporate Health Scheme in accordance with the current rules of the Scheme. Membership of the Scheme does not extend to family members and is a taxable benefit in kind.
A generous pension scheme (either Teachers’ Pension Scheme (TPS) or Defined Contribution (DC) Scheme) and Life Cover (4 times salary) are part of the package.
The successful applicant will be automatically included as a member of the TPS, where both the employee and employer will each meet their statutory contribution rate to the scheme. At Winchester College, where teachers choose to participate in the TPS, the cost to the College of employer pension contributions is capped at 23.68%. From 1 April 2024, employer contributions rose to 28.68%, with the 5% differential deducted from the employee’s gross salary.
Should the successful applicant opt out of the TPS and elect to join the DC Scheme, there is no corresponding reduction in salary. The default employee and employer contributions are 9% and 21.5% respectively. The DC Scheme offers the flexibility to reduce employee and employer contributions below the default percentage, should the employee wish to, with a minimum contribution of 5% for employee and 5% for employer contributions. Any differential between the employee’s chosen employer contribution and 21.5%, net of additional employer payroll costs, will be paid as non-pensionable salary via salary exchange.
Annual Leave
This is a Teaching position which benefits from the school holidays.
Probation, Notice Periods
The first twenty-four months of employment will be a probationary period. Regular reviews with line managers take place over the probationary period with the opportunity to discuss progress, identify any areas for action and ensure that there is appropriate guidance and support in place to enable successful completion of the probationary period.
During the probationary period, the notice required by either party to terminate employment will be one month within the first term of employment. After the first term, the notice required by either party to terminate employment will be one full term.
Once employment is confirmed, the notice period will be one full term.
Applicants for a non-teaching role
Hours of Work
This would be a full-time position, 40 hours per week. These hours will be worked during term time only with the addition of extracurricular hours as required and such other hours as are reasonably necessary to meet the needs of the College and the demands of the role. These hours of work may be spread over Monday to Sunday.
After the end and before the beginning of each term, the postholder will also be expected to complete two days of administration/preparation, including any PDD and compliance training.
The post is tenured for five years, which may be extended subject to mutual agreement.
Competitive salary, depending on qualifications and experience. Salary is paid monthly, in arrears, to a nominated back account in 12 equal payments. Salary levels are reviewed on 1 September annually and this appointment will be next reviewed in September 2025.
Holidays
The College leave year runs from 1 September to 31 August. This position will be entitled to the statutory holiday requirements. These are presently 28 days (including Bank Holidays) per annum. Any Public Bank Holiday occurring during term time is deemed to be a normal working day. All leave must be taken outside of the school’s term times.
Probation and Notice Periods
The first four working months of employment will be a probationary period. During this time, conduct and performance will be reviewed. The College may extend the probationary period if it is deemed to be required. During the probationary period the notice required to terminate employment will be one week (by either the employee or employer). Once employment is confirmed, the notice period will increase to one month.
The school is fully committed to the induction, training and development of all our staff, with staff supported to grow and reach their full potential.
We deliver a range of training, run by both our own staff and external providers, varying from highly practical First Aid courses to seminars and learning lunches, as well as offering access to Udemy, an online learning platform.
There is an annual cycle of performance review offering the opportunity to reflect on professional practice and development opportunities.
The school also offers a wide range of apprenticeships supporting staff development and progression.
Pension and Life Cover
On employment, employees will be auto-enrolled into the College’s pension scheme according to legislative thresholds. Those who are not eligible for auto-enrolment may still elect to join the College’s pension scheme.
Initially, when joining the College’s pension scheme, employees will become a member of the College’s Group Personal Pension Plan (GPP). For this Plan, known as Tier 1, the employee contributes 5% and the employer 3%.
After 9 month’s membership of the Tier 1 plan, employees may opt to join Tier 2, which is also a GPP, where the employee contributes 5% and the employer 9%.
Employees in Tier 1 automatically qualify for a Life Cover of 2 times salary. On entry to Tier 2, Life Cover changes to 4 times salary.
Wider Benefits for all staff
Enhanced Disclosure Check
As Winchester College is an educational establishment, a condition of employment will be that the successful candidate must consent to the school obtaining an Enhanced Level Disclosure Check through the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). This will reveal all spent and unspent convictions, warnings, cautions and bind-overs. A policy on the recruitment of ex-offenders is available on the school’s website.
Safeguarding is one of the primary responsibilities of this role. The jobholder is responsible for promoting and safeguarding the welfare of children and young persons for whom they are responsible, or with whom they come into contact with, and will need to adhere to and ensure compliance with the school’s Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy at all times. The postholder should be conversant with the responsibilities and procedures detailed in this policy and with the Department for Education’s Keeping Children Safe in Education. If, in the course of carrying out the duties of the post, the postholder becomes aware of any actual or potential risks to the safety or welfare of children in the school, they must report any concerns to the school’s Designated Safeguarding Lead, or in their absence, the Deputy Designated Safeguarding Leads.
References and Other Pre-employment Checks
The appointment will be dependent upon the receipt of a successful medical check and satisfactory references. The College will usually seek references from shortlisted candidates before interview and may approach previous employers for information to verify particular experience or qualifications. At least one referee must be the current or most recent employer. Where applicants are not currently working with children but have done so in the past, one referee must be the person by whom they were most recently employed when working with children.
How to Apply
Only applications completed on the school website will be accepted.
Closing date for applications: 9am on Friday 24th May 2024.
Please note that applications will be dealt with as they arrive.
Winchester College reserves the right to appoint prior to the closing date.
Interviews to be held during w/c 3rd June 2024, though the College reserves the right to interview candidates prior to the closing date.
Those wishing for an informal conversation about this role are invited to contact the HR Department at recruitment@wincoll.ac.uk.
If you have any questions about this vacancy or the recruitment process, please email recruitment@wincoll.ac.uk.
Further information about the school can be found at www.winchestercollege.org.
Data Protection
Winchester College collects and processes relevant personal data as part of its everyday operations and is obliged to process it in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation and Data Act 2018. The school is the Data Controller of this data under the Act and is registered with the Information Commissioner's Office. Its registration number is Z5751669.
If you have any queries or comments about this policy or how personal data is processed by the school, please contact the Bursar and his team by emailing: dataprotection@wincoll.ac.uk or by writing to: Data Protection, The Bursary, Winchester College, College Street, Winchester, SO23 9NA.
PART V: ABOUT WINCHESTER COLLEGE
In February 2021, Winchester announced a bold new vision and a significant programme of change. ‘Winchester College in the 21st Century’ describes the School’s ambitions for its future and heralds the start of an exciting new phase in Winchester’s development.
Winchester was a pioneering institution when it was founded in 1382 and this new vision will ensure the School continues to be a leader and influencer of great education on the modern global stage. The commitment to provide an intellectual education of exceptional quality and breadth remains unaltered, as do the values which have underpinned Winchester since its foundation. ‘Winchester College in the 21st Century’ will build on these strengths and bring multiple benefits to current and future generations of Wykehamists.
Winchester currently has over 700 pupils. In September 2022, the College welcomed 40 day pupils, including 17 girls, into the Sixth Form and will continue to do so, over time expanding the entry each year to include girl boarders in due course.
Academically, Winchester is among the very best schools in the country and is sought after for its combination of superb teaching, pastoral care, sports and activities.
At all levels Winchester encourages pupils to look beyond the curriculum. Div is our unique programme of general cultural studies and offers an excellent preparation for university study. In these lessons, pupils engage with a wide range of subjects, from English Literature to Ancient History to the History of Science.
Pupils in the Sixth Form study linear A-level courses and will ordinarily study three A-level subjects and an Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) alongside Div. Linear A-levels are complemented by the flexibility of the EPQ where pupils are able to more deeply explore their cross-curricular research interests. The EPQ encourages pupils to develop first-class research skills, to synthesise information from a variety of differing sources, and to become accustomed to the demands of independent study.
Music has been central to life at Winchester ever since its foundation, and the school is unique in having maintained its Choral Foundation to the present day. The Music Department is now one of the leading departments in the country, and offers outstanding opportunities to all.
Sport is a major part of Winchester life. There are many fixtures against other schools, and in 2024 the redevelopment of the sports facilities will see a state-of-the-art complex open that will allow all pupils to enjoy and participate in a variety of sports, whilst simultaneously enabling the most talented and driven pupils to train and compete at the highest level.
Much energy is also invested in the Combined Cadet Force, the Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme, Community Service, and in links with local primary and secondary maintained schools. This commitment provides pupils with many opportunities to work for the benefit of others, inside and outside the classroom, developing the knowledge and skills, and the rights and responsibilities, which will enable them to grow into valuable and productive members of society.
Pupils eat all meals in their boarding houses, talking with their Housemaster/mistress, and interacting with friends, visitors and teachers. We believe that conversational ability, developed both inside and outside the community, equips pupils to talk to anyone, about anything, in practically any situation.
This unparalleled combination attracts pupils from across the world, making Winchester a truly international and diverse community which celebrates every pupil’s individuality, passions and potential.
Winchester College is committed to maintaining the founder’s original intention of offering an outstanding education to any pupil who would benefit from it, regardless of their financial circumstances, and many of the pupils in the College are being helped financially through the school with substantial bursaries.
Diversity and Inclusion
Winchester College is a truly international community that celebrates everyone’s individuality, talents and potential and offers regular training and career development opportunities. We embrace diversity and inclusion in the workplace and are committed to promoting a fair and supportive environment for all our employees. We work hard to create a culture where different perspectives are valued and our staff feel valued for their individuality, and share a sense of belonging. Our aim is to reflect the diverse nature of society and of our pupil body.
Sustainability
Both staff and pupils at Winchester College are committed to being the most sustainable school possible. You can learn more about our goal of creating a more sustainable school here.
Full details about the school may be found at www.winchestercollege.org.
